


A Collection of Days

by Anath_Tsurugi



Category: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016), Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Original Trilogy, Star Wars: Rebellion Era - All Media Types, Star Wars: Rebels
Genre: Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Anal Sex, BAMF Kallus, Because I clearly have a thing for Star Wars rair pairs, Draven being an imbecile, Ghost crew rescuing Rogue One, Implied RogueJedi, Intercrural Sex, M/M, Oral Sex, Pirates of the Caribbean wedding, Semi-Public Sex, Valentine's Day Challenge, fairy tale AU, prompts
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-04
Updated: 2019-10-10
Packaged: 2019-11-09 04:05:27
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 15
Words: 16,688
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17994521
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anath_Tsurugi/pseuds/Anath_Tsurugi
Summary: Just my fills for Bro-rifles' 14 Days of Kalluzeb Valentine's challenge. Have this nice random string of Kalluzeb.Edit: Extra day I wrote for Jellysharkbat. Enjoy!





	1. Flowers

**Author's Note:**

> So Bro-rifles hosted a 14 Days of Valentines prompt challenge over on Tumblr and I figured I had best get all of my prompt fills displayed in a nice single easy to access spot. There's no particular plot connection between most of them, just individual fills. I'll just be gradually collecting them here. Hope you enjoy!

"Happy birthday, Kallus!"

Alexsandr Kallus would admit that he'd heard some very unnerving things in his lifetime, even more so since taking on the responsibilities of a Fulcrum agent. However, he could now say with complete honesty that nothing he had heard before was _half_ so unnerving as Ezra Bridger wishing him a happy birthday.

"I _beg_ your pardon?" he said to the young commander, drawing the attention of what felt like half the command center.

"Yeah, man, it's definitely the right day. Sorry we don't have a party set up or anything, but if you wanted that, you should've said something. We just found out," the boy said with a teasing grin.

"How _did_ you find that out?"

"Front and center," he answered, pointing at the holo display he and Sabine had been working at. Above it floated an image of Kallus with a small block of text offering additional information. The holo was not very flattering, having been taken after he'd received a working over from Thrawn. "The Empire just sent out a fresh warrant for your arrest. It has your birth date in it."

"Hold up. It's your birthday?" Zeb asked, looking up from some briefing he'd been going over with Hera and Kanan. "Karabast, Kal. Why didn't you say anythin'?"

"I...didn't know," he answered awkwardly, gaze darting between Zeb and the holo.

"Didn't know? How can you not know your own birthday?" Sabine asked incredulously.

"It's not- so much that I don't _know_ the date of my birth. As a piece of information, I am aware of what date I was born on. It's just...I tend to forget about it. I haven't marked my birthday since before the first Empire Day was decreed."

Hearing that, Zeb gave a small, perturbed growl. "Hera? Kanan? Can this wait about ten minutes?"

"I suppose," Hera said, raising an eyebrow at him. "What, exactly, are you thinking?"

"You'll see. And you," he called to Kallus just before striding out of the command center, "don't go anywhere, yeah? I'll be right back."

At first, everyone was buzzing with curiosity about what it was the Lasat was planning to do, but about five minutes into the wait, that interest fizzled out, allowing everyone to get back to their duties; including Kallus. He'd very nearly managed to forget that anything out of the ordinary was supposed to be happening – until a vibrantly-colored teal bloom was suddenly thrust before his face.

"What- what's-" he started in surprise, following the patterned lines of purple up from the strong hand gripping the delicate blossom to the face of its owner. Zeb was smiling shyly at him as he offered him the flower.

"This was what we did...back on Lasan...for birthdays. We'd give a flower. Just one flower. Somethin' you thought...fit the person. I dunno what this flower's called, but I've seen 'em growin' up on the sides of the temple, some place flowers don't have any call to be bloomin'. To me, that- that's you. You could bloom anywhere...no matter how high the odds were stacked against you. I'm happy you were born."

For a long while, all Kallus could manage to do was stare at the blossom Zeb was offering him, something unsettling but also pleasantly warm churning in his stomach. It really was a beautiful flower, and the fragrance was pleasant, not overpowering like much of the flora sprawled out across the surface of Yavin IV.

_You could bloom anywhere...no matter how high the odds were stacked against you._

"Thank you," he finally whispered, feeling heat rise in his cheeks as he took the offered bloom from the Lasat. Zeb scratched awkwardly at the back of his head for a moment before beginning to mumble.

"Well, now I've successfully embarrassed us both in front of half the rebellion, I think I'll just go hide under a rock," he said before making his way back out of the command center.

Kallus was left standing there, stricken, just gazing at the simple present. As gifts went, it was certainly the simplest he'd ever received, but it was also the most heartfelt – the most beautiful.

Kallus didn't let go of the flower for the rest of the day.

When the Galactic Civil War came to an end some five years later, the ex-Imperial had among his meager possessions a small bouquet consisting of five dried flowers, all of different colors and all from different worlds, but at their center was that very first flower – that single teal lily.


	2. Thorns

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All righty, this one needs a bit of backstory. It's from a fairy tale AU idea I'd been toying with a few months before the challenge, so I decided to fiddle with it a little. I'll definitely writng a proper story to go with it at some point, but here's a taste for now. All you really need to know for this scene is that Zeb is part fey while Kallus is human.

> _There's sweetness in an apple tree,_
> 
> _And profit in the corn;_
> 
> _But lady of all beauty_
> 
> _Is a rose upon a thorn._

\- Christina Rossetti

* * *

"Zeb, _stop!_ "

Garazeb heard his friend's cry, but he didn't heed it. He had his eyes fixed on the ball and he wasn't going to lose it.

The little red ball was bouncing through the forest all on its own. He didn't _think_ he'd thrown it that hard, but it wouldn't be the first time he didn't know his own strength. He wasn't going to let that get the better of him this time. He kept on after the fleeing ball, kept on until it rolled right into the thicket of thorns at the borders of the forest.

He hardly noticed the small call at the back of his mind that was both warning and siren song. This close to the Boundary, he should've heeded it, but all he knew in that moment was that he was about to lose Alex's very favorite toy and he wasn't going to let that happen. So, ignoring every warning in his head and heart, he thrust a hand into the thorny brambles.

" _ZEB!_ "

It was a really strange feeling, both pain and not. As he watched, the wild thorns dug into his dark skin, the briar seeming to pulse as it drank his blood. Transfixed, he felt his head grow light and sleepy as his gaze was drawn deep into the thorn forest. And somewhere, just at the edges of his sight, he thought he could see a figure within the thorns – a creature with haunting red eyes.

_Come away, O human child._

"But...I'm not-"

"Zeb! _NO!_ " Alex's shouting was suddenly in his ears and the other boy was crashing into him, tearing him free of the briar's hold. Even though Alex was smaller than him, he seemed to have no trouble pinning him down as they went crashing to the ground.

For several moments, Zeb just lay on the ground, staring up at the faint gray light shining through the dark green leaves overhead, softly singing along with the voice still winding dangerously through his thoughts.

_Come away, O human child_

_To the waters and the wild_

_With a faerie, hand in hand_

_For the world's more full of weeping than you can understand_

He might've kept on singing...were it not for the feel of Alex's tears on his skin as he clung to him, keeping him pinned to the ground – keeping him from rising and going to the thorns.

"Zeb, don't. _Please_ don't!" the other boy sobbed as if his heart might break. "Don't sing that awful song! If you let them in, they'll take you away. I don't want you to go! Please stay. _Wake up!_ "

As his friend's pleas slowly melted the ice that had flooded his veins, Zeb fell quiet, his arms slowly wrapping around the other boy.

"I'm sorry," he whimpered, tears springing to his own eyes.

A tiny sob of relief escaped the smaller boy as he looked up at him. "You're all right. You came back! You...d-don't you do that again!" he sobbed, a fresh wave of tears pouring down his face. "Don't ever go near those thorns! Not ever!"

"But I- I lost your ball," Zeb whispered meekly. "Your favorite ball."

"So what? You're my favorite _friend_. I'd care more if I lost _you_ in those thorns than any stupid ball."

"But I didn't-"

"Zeb, you're bleeding," Alex pointed out in worry as he scrambled off of him. When the eight-year-old looked down at his hand, it was to find it bleeding from several tiny punctures – the places where the thorns had fed.

"It's all right," he tried to wave his friend off. "It'll be fine by tonight anyway."

"But what's it going to do in the meantime? Bleed everywhere?" Alex demanded petulantly as he pulled off his nice vest, beginning to tear it into strips.

"Alex, no!" Zeb tried to argue. "Your mum's gonna be angry at you."

"Good," the younger boy snapped right back, clumsily starting to wrap the strips of fine cloth around Zeb's hand and fingers. By the time he was finished, there was a crude but well-meant bandage wrapped around the half-fey's injured hand.

For another long moment, Zeb stared down at his hand, tiny pinpricks of blood already showing through the remnants of his friend's vest. It didn't hurt much. All he was really left with was a warm, tingling feeling in his tummy.

"Thank you," he said quietly as he looked back up at his friend. Alex smiled at him as he offered him a hand up.

"It's nothing. Let's get back. There are other toys we can play with."

"Right," Zeb said, his voice still quiet as he let Alex pull him to his feet and begin to lead him back through the forest.

Even with Alex's worry, even with the warnings his mother had always given him, Zeb couldn't quite help turning to look back at the thicket, the blanket of thorns that separated their world from...from the _Other_ world. There was no sign of the creature he'd glimpsed earlier, but where he had thrust his hand into the barrier, where his blood still clung to the thorns, a single red rose had bloomed. And as he watched, its blood-red petals slowly turned purple. All the while, the faint strains of that same song pulled at his errant, frightened thoughts – a song that was both comfort and curse. He had heard it all his life, only now the words had changed.

_Come away, O_ _ **faerie**_ _child_

_To the waters and the wild_

_With a faerie, hand in hand..._


	3. Pining

If Kallus had to say so himself, he would say without reservation that he was a damn fine intelligence officer. After all, it wasn't for nothing that he'd risen to the top of his class at Royal Imperial, or become one of the Imperial Security Bureau's top field agents. He was _good_ at what he did. Whether or not he liked to ease up on himself, he knew that his work as Fulcrum had been a boon to the Alliance. He could trick an unwary officer out of the secret location of every last one of the Empire's top secret projects and not have his mark be any the wiser as to his goals.

He was brilliant.

So would someone mind explaining to him, then, why it was that he could never seem to will away his own blush whenever he was in the same room with Garazeb Orrelios?

To those who were bold enough to point it out, he'd managed to pass off the phenomena as a reaction to Yavin IV's hot and humid climate. He was _very_ pale-skinned after all and he'd never done well in direct sunlight for extended amounts of time. It wasn't a difficult sell, but the more astute ones were already beginning to figure him out, and it wouldn't be long before the less astute began to follow suit. And if _they_ could figure it out...

Thankfully, Zeb himself was quite oblivious, and Kallus didn't know if that should make him feel better or worse. Better for not having to deal directly with his particular feelings for the Lasat, but worse for being worth so little in the former guardsman's view.

And what was he that he was reduced to thinking in such petty terms? A kriffing school boy? Pathetic. Why should Zeb see him as anything more than a fellow rebel? If he couldn't get this under control, it was going to start affecting his work for the rebellion, and _then_ where would he be? If his thoughts had caught up with the rest of the world around him, though, he might have realized that he'd already toed that line, because by the time he awoke to the fact that he'd been staring openly at the Lasat for the past five minutes, Zeb had certainly become aware of it.

"Hey? You awake in there?" Zeb called to him with a small grin that, in Kallus' eyes, held a small note of uncertainty.

"I...yes?" he tried to respond, fighting to snap himself out of his daze.

"Question mark? You're not sure?"

"I...was...distracted," he offered up lamely. Stars dammit all! Where was the unflinching rebel spy who had faced down Grand Admiral Thrawn when he _needed_ him? "I- I'm sorry. I'm going to need a moment. Please excuse me," he apologized to Zeb and everyone else in the meeting before making his way out to the temple exterior.

Growling angrily at himself, he ran a hand through his much longer hair. "Grow the kriff up, Kallus. This isn't school."

"Y'know, he can't know if you don't tell him."

To his credit, Kallus retained at least enough of his training not to jump at the unexpected sound of Kanan Jarrus' voice. He still threw a nasty, if ineffectual, glare over his shoulder as the Jedi approached.

"I do wish you wouldn't do that," he grumbled. "Either rifle through my thoughts or sneak up on me."

"One, anybody could sneak up on you when you're like this, and two, I don't need the Force to see that you've got it bad for him, and I can't even _see,_ so that right there should tell you exactly how _un_ subtle you're being," the knight explained as he moved around to Kallus' front.

"Lovely. Just lovely," Kallus ground out. "There goes _my_ shining career as an intelligence agent."

"Not necessarily," Kanan said with a shrug. "You're at least lucky enough that Zeb doesn't notice."

Kallus glanced at the Jedi out of the corner of his eye. "So what is this then? Are you going to tell me to back off of your friend?"

Kanan actually laughed at that one, full-bodied and loud. "Oh, man. That's a good one. Thanks. I needed to laugh. But no. If Garazeb Orrelios had someone's interest he didn't want, he could take care of that on his own just fine. Who do you imagine crosses an angry Lasat with a bo-rifle?"

"Granted," the ex-Imperial said quietly, though he couldn't quite shake the memories of Lasan that skated across the surface of his mind. But the knight seemed to pick up on his change in mood and quickly shifted back to serious.

"I'm not saying he's oblivious to give you the opportunity to back off. I'm saying it because I'm going to present you with a little fact. You look away from him whenever you think he might catch you staring at him. What do you think he does when you look away?"

Kallus' first instinct was to disparage himself in some way, to turn aside even the possibility of such a joy. After all, why should someone as strong, as brave, as kind, as _good_ as Garazeb Orrelios even look twice at someone like _him?_ Zeb had saved his life, had helped him to see just what sort of path he was on, and he would be eternally grateful, but to be selfish enough to ask for more? How _could_ he?

But then...why would Kanan Jarrus of all people suggest such a thing to him if it was less than the truth? He couldn't wholly deny the slight fluttering of his heartbeat as he looked back toward the Jedi.

Kanan nodded, and even though Kallus had no idea how the man could perceive the change in him, he clearly had. Rather than say all the things he would've _liked_ to say in protest, he ultimately asked, "Why me?"

"I'm not really the person to answer that question. Even with what I can understand through the Force, what's in Zeb's heart belongs to him. Only _he_ can tell you that. What _I_ know is that I've never seen him as happy as he is when he's with you, and I'll do anything to ensure that my best friend's happy. If that includes getting you to get your head out of your ass, then so be it."

The only response Kallus could manage for that one was a protracted moment of blinking at the Jedi, and once again, Kanan laughed, though it was more of a chuckle this time around.

"All right, all right. I guess I've offended your delicate ex-Imperial sensibilities. All I'm really trying to say is...don't let your chance go. It's way too easy to let the best thing you'll ever have fly right by you. You don't know- when you might lose your chance forever. Talk to him, Kallus," he said before heading back inside the temple.

Kallus didn't have the chance to, not before the _Ghost_ crew headed to Lothal, but he did understand the knight's words better upon seeing the bottomless well of grief in Hera Syndulla's eyes when she came to gather all of them for the Liberation. Understood them, and honored them when he pulled Zeb to the side for a quiet, searching kiss before their last run on Capital City.

"In case we never have the chance again," he whispered against the Lasat's lips.

But they did, as it happened. It was the first of many kisses.


	4. Rekindle

Despite the fact that they were in the middle of a very hot firefight, Hera's strafing run over the beaches of Scarif was a breath of cool relief for Zeb. At the very end of one of the stretches, amidst the sprays of blood and sand, he could spot Kallus' distinct blond hair. Still moving...

Still alive.

He'd been terrified when they'd rescued the few remaining commandos from the infiltrator shuttle, as the defector pilot had told them that Kallus had been part of the ground forces and not part of the infiltration team. He would be where the fighting was hottest.

Don't you be dead. Don't you dare be dead, Kal! If you die on me, I'm gonna drag you back and kill you myself.

But he wasn't dead. When the Ghost made its pickup sweep, the human had suffered hardly more than a few blaster grazes. With two other soldiers in tow, he was helping the black-robed Guardian carry his husband from the battlefield.

Quickly passing the gunner's seat to Rex, Zeb hurried down to the hold, anxious to see for himself that Kallus was all right. When he arrived, his foolhardy lover only just managed to pull himself away from the two Guardians with a worried look. Zelina had already arrived and was working on stabilizing the injured commandos. Kallus' injuries, at least, wouldn't need to be looked over immediately.

"Cassian?" he pressed. "Have you found Cassian and the girl yet?"

"No. There's been no word. Kal-"

"We have to find them! Cassian's one of mine, Zeb. I can't just leave him here."

Zeb exhaled heavily before asking, "Where'd they go?"

"The comm tower. That's where they'll be."

"And there's nobody else?"

"Unless you've had word from any of Blue Squadron, no. We are- all that's left," Kallus said, the ghost of something painful flickering briefly in his amber eyes.

"You catch that, Hera?" Zeb asked over his comlink, which he'd kept open throughout.

"Got it," was her response.

Kallus did a double take at this. "Hera? Hera Syndulla's piloting this ship?"

"Yeah."

"But- she- she's still on medical leave!" he spluttered in shock. "It hasn't even been twenty-four hours since-"

"I'm where I need to be, Alexsandr Kallus," the Twi'lek's scolding tone came over the comlink. "Now you just sit tight and hold on."

"Ravenous kath hounds couldn't'a stopped her when she thought she might lose another member of her family," Zeb told him, offering him a very pointed side eye. "Couldn't'a stopped me, either."

A look of guilt moved across the ex-Imperial's face at this. Looking away from Zeb, he squeezed his eyes tightly shut. "I had to, Zeb. I couldn't-"

"I get it," Zeb ground out, voice a strange mix of anger and relief. "I know why, but you can't expect me not to have a go at you. It could'a been you! It could'a been you down there right now," he snarled as he pulled his lover into his arms, holding him fiercely against his chest.

"Oh...Zeb..." the human whispered tremulously, fingers catching in the fabric of his battle suit as he clung to him. But the moment was interrupted all too soon by Hera's terse comm.

"I've got your wayward agent and his friend on my scope, Kal," she informed them. "I'm gonna do a sweep. You need to be at the ramp to make sure they're onboard. We're gonna need to get out of here yesterday once we have them."

They did as Hera asked, hurrying to the entry ramp. It was almost worth their present danger to see the look of shock on Andor's face when the Ghost swooped in to rescue him and the Erso girl.

"COME ON!" Kallus roared at the pair. Andor was dumbfounded, but some survival instinct clearly kicked in with the girl, because she was instantly helping the Fulcrum agent limp to the ship. The blistering heat and light of the Death Star's shot were already bearing down on the tiny freighter.

"Hera, we got 'em. Go!" Zeb snapped over his comlink.

"Gone," she snapped back, immediately sending her ship rocketing away from its present location.

The four of them were knocked nearly off their feet. Bracing himself against the bulkhead with one hand, Zeb kept the two younger rebels pinned against the wall while they held tightly to each other. Kallus he kept pinned against his own chest with his other arm, trusting him to hold on.

Kallus didn't disappoint. He held tightly to the Lasat, making himself as small as possible against him. For several tense moments, the two of them just breathed each other in – in case this was the last chance they would ever have to do so.

"Come on. Come on!" Andor whispered several times, his eyes wide with fear as he clung to Erso.

"Please. Not now. Not now," came the sound of Erso's voice, muffled against Andor's chest.

"Zeb..." Kallus started, looking up at him.

"I know," he returned, kissing the top of the ex-agent's head. "Me, too."

It was close. So close none of them really wanted to know just how close it had been. But they all felt it the moment the Ghost achieved escape velocity, bursting into the hollow whiteness of hyperspace. For a single, protracted moment, they all collapsed against the bulkhead, quite certain they would all be on the floor right now if not for its cool, solid reality.

"Who?" Erso...Jyn...asked suddenly, mastering her breathing as she looked over at Zeb and Kallus. "Who made it out? Bodhi? Chirrut and Baze-"

"Your friends are all right," Kallus reassured her. "Zelina is seeing to them now. Everyone is down in the hold if you want to see them."

Jyn immediately slipped out from under Zeb's arm, heading up the corridor. Cassian followed suit a moment later, taking the time to look back at them.

"I don't think- she knows the Ghost just yet. Better point her in the right direction."

"Of course," Kallus said with a nod.

"Kallus...Orrelios..." he started, reaching back to shake both their hands. "Thanks for the save?"

"Any time," Kallus said, and Zeb agreed with a nod of his own.

Then the two young rebels were gone and the two of them were alone in the ramp corridor.

"Zel," Zeb hailed the young medic over his comlink. "You got this handled or do you need help?"

"It's handled," she responded a moment later. "Rex is here now, and one of these guys has some basic field training. You do what you need to," she told him, and he couldn't quite stop himself from rolling his eyes. He could just about hear the little wink in the young woman's voice.

He didn't say anything in response, though. He just took an unquestioning Kallus by the hand and led him back to their bunk. It would be hours yet before they were able to limp back to Yavin IV and they both knew how they'd be spending the time.

Once their door slid closed behind Kallus, the human was leaning silently against it, arms held out to receive the Lasat into them. Zeb quickly covered the smaller male's body with his own, claiming his mouth in a desperate kiss. Kallus groaned softly as he was pressed against the door, both holding Zeb and clinging to him.

"Oh, Zeb...my Zeb," he breathed against the Lasat's fur.

"I really thought- I wasn't gonna see you again," Zeb whispered against his grimy skin, dropping his face down to the ex-Imperial's neck in order to work his scent into the skin – to banish the scent of battle and death.

"I'm sorry," Kallus returned, dropping little kisses on the top of the Lasat's head. "I never would've...but I couldn't..."

Zeb silenced him with another kiss to the lips. He didn't need to hear it. He didn't need to hear how little his Alex valued his own life – how little he cared for the treasure that Zeb prized above all others. He just needed the man to know how he loved him. So, divesting him of his jacket and shirt, he gently guided the two of them to their bunk, gazing tenderly down at him as he laid him down on the bed.

It didn't take them long to remove the last of their clothing, nor for Zeb to simply fall on the human, caressing and kissing every bit of his lover that he could. Alternating between Basic and Lasana with each whispered declaration, he pressed his love into Kallus' skin.

"L'ashkerrir an. I love you. L'ashkerrir an."

"Ungh...Zeb," his lover panted against him as they moved together on the bed, making love slowly.

The words were simple between them, their meaning made more explicit by each movement and each touch.

I love you. I need you. Please don't leave me.

This went on until they came undone in each other's arms, Zeb crouched protectively over Alex's body and Alex with his head thrown back against the bunk, his mouth contorting around a wordless, voiceless cry.

They didn't speak when it was done. There was little that could be said that hadn't already passed between them in their coupling. They simply lay together in the warm darkness, their promises to each other renewed.


	5. Sweet

"So are you really not gonna tell us what it is we snuck in here for?" Ezra whispered from the back of the small group.

"It's on a need to know basis," Kallus whispered right back as he led the way through the storehouse.

"We're your teammates. We need to know," Sabine pointed out.

"Give it a rest, you two," Zeb snarled quietly. " _I_ don't even know what it is we're after. You lot've got no chance."

Chopper's typical crotchety warble joined in with the chorus of complaints, though it was somewhat quieter than the little astromech normally complained.

"Well, maybe if you weren't so busy whinging, you would've gotten to knock out some bucketheads, too," Zeb fired back.

"Children," Kallus scolded mildly, keeping his focus ahead of them. "I _will_ turn this covert operation around."

"Yeah, sure you will. Before we get whatever secret stash it is you're after," Sabine said. "Don't make promises you can't keep, Kallus."

The ex-Imperial rolled his eyes, but he kept searching. They all knew it wouldn't be long before reinforcements arrived for the cadre of stormtroopers they'd taken out. Timing was critical here.

"Seriously, though. We could probably help you search if we knew what it was you were after," Ezra said.

"No need," Kallus told them once he'd read the code from the latest storage block, quickly hacking into its security protocols. "This is the one. Sabine, have you got the grav-sled?"

"Just waiting on you," the young Mandalorian said, bringing the anti-grav transport up past the other three.

Kallus was into the storage unit in only a few moments, hurrying inside and moving from crate to crate, each one environmentally sealed, searching for what his intelligence said was here.

"Chrono's tickin', Kal," Zeb reminded him.

"I'm aware," he muttered to himself, scanning each crate until he finally found what he was looking for.

LES15-S72.

"Here. This is the one," he said, waving Sabine over.

"You got it," she said, bringing the sled up alongside the crate so Zeb could lift it onto the bed.

That was the moment the intruder alert sounded.

"Well, this just might get interesting," the ex-Imperial said as he drew his blaster.

The escapes always were interesting in the Rebel Alliance. After a frantic chase through the storage depot and a quick escape from the Imperial-occupied planet, the members of Spectre Cell found themselves half-collapsed in the _Ghost's_ cargo hold, breathing heavily.

"So," Rex started in as he came down from the cockpit, "somebody wanna let me in on just what it was we were risking our necks for?"

"Yes. Of course," Kallus conceded with a small laugh as he climbed to his feet beside the hard-won crate, keying in its access code. The other Spectres quickly got to their feet to have a look inside.

It didn't look like much. Not anything either of the younger rebels recognized, at least.

"They're...seed packets?" Sabine asked slowly as she lifted one of the canisters from its resting place inside the crate. "Environmental data collection? Plant samples?" she pressed on, looking to some of the smaller deep freeze units contained within their prize.

"Just so," Kallus responded, seeking out one unit in particular. "The Empire keeps stringent record of every world conquered and colonized. Each environment is meticulously studied so that each possible resource might be taken advantage of. And if nothing is of immediate use or...it has already served its purpose...then a basic profile collection is gathered and stored at a facility like the one we just raided," he explained, smiling when he finally found the deep freeze unit he wanted.

"Wait, wait, wait. Let me get this straight," Ezra started in. "We just broke into an Imperial facility, got _shot at_ by stormtroopers, barely made it out all in one piece...all because you wanted to start a _garden?_ "

"This wouldn't be just any garden," Kallus said, suddenly feeling nervous as he looked over at Zeb. "This particular collection...comes from Lasan."

Zeb's initial reaction was a sharp intake of breath, his expression stricken, as if he didn't quite know _how_ to react.

"Alex..." he whispered after several moments.

"It took me some time- to learn the location of the Lasan collection," Kallus started to ramble, turning his focus back to shutting down the deep freeze function on the container he'd retrieved. "There may be more crates, but _this_ was the one I wanted to find for you. Its particular configuration revolves around...fruit-bearing plants," he finished as the unit's locking mechanism switched from blue to green, signifying that deep freeze had been safely deactivated.

"Alex...you _didn't_..."

"I- I'm afraid I did," he said, still not looking at his lover as he opened the container, revealing several large pieces of yellow-golden fruit. "You'd talked of them so fondly, I just-"

"What are they?" Ezra asked.

" _Shanvyr,_ " Zeb said softly in Lasana as he lifted one of the pieces of fruit from the container. The oval-shaped fruit was largely that golden yellow color, except for the very ends of it, which were a stark, almost blood red hue. "I've only ever seen it- growin' on Lasan."

Transfixed, the Lasat used a single claw to pierce the skin of the ripe _shanvyr_. Then, peeling back a strip of the rind, he easily pulled the rest of it apart, bringing the orange flesh of the fruit close to his face to inhale the scent. He shuddered once in pleasure before biting into it.

Alex watched him enjoy the fruit with a pleasant, persistent flutter in his heart. A bite of food was in no way comparable to a planet. It wasn't much. There wasn't much he had to offer Garazeb Orrelios; he knew. But even the tiniest bit of joy he could bring him was worth any price the galaxy could possibly ask of him.

When Zeb looked up from the _shanvyr_ , there was a bright sheen of threatening tears in his round eyes.

"Alex...thank you for this. I never thought I'd taste one of these again."

"I know it's not much," he attempted to brush the words off.

"No, it's not. It's everything," he countered before moving in to capture the former agent in a deep, passionate kiss. So deep, in fact, that he was rewarded with the sweet, mildly citrusy flavor of the _shanvyr_ on his tongue. Sighing happily into the kiss, he let himself melt into it. He was almost able to even ignore the rising banter of the younger Spectres.

"Nearly dying for fruit was bad enough. Really don't need to see the thank you sex," Ezra griped.

"Aw, come on," Sabine ribbed back. "It's not like it's the _first_ time you've almost died for fruit. I think it's sweet what Kallus did."

"Yes. Very sweet. Doesn't mean I need to see it."

"Then you can go somewhere else," Zeb said in a gloriously deep growl, barely pulling away from Alex to speak the words. "Me, I'm gonna see how many licks it takes to get to the center of an ex-Imperial."

Alex shivered pleasantly into the embrace, quite happy not to register the rest of the world as they sank into the next _shanvyr_ -flavored kiss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here is a lovely little piece of artwork done by Bro-rifles for this fill. So adorables!
> 
> https://kalluzebweddingplan.tumblr.com/post/182720909839/for-anathtsurugi-s-day-five-thank-you-so-much


	6. Bitter

Zeb wasn't sure, at first, what it was that woke him from his sleep. Everything _seemed_ normal when he glanced around their bunk, but for some reason, he noticed the bitter, ashy taste of terror at the back of his throat. Its source soon became apparent to him when he noticed the shifting of movement on his chest.

He looked down to see Kallus twitching in his sleep, the occasional whimper escaping his lips. His face was covered in a sheen of sweat and his hands were beginning to clench tightly, fingers digging into Zeb's fur.

"No," he whispered helplessly in his sleep. " _No_...didn't...I _couldn't-_ "

"Kal?" Zeb started, shaking him gently, hoping to ease him awake. "Kal, it's not real."

"Please..." he cried out, actual tears flowing down his cheeks. " _Please!_ "

" _Alex_ ," the Lasat hissed a bit more insistently.

" _No! STOP!_ " the human shouted, finally coming awake in Zeb's arms. He tightened his grip on his lover as the smaller man thrashed against him, making certain he didn't hurt himself.

"It's _okay_ ," he said firmly. "You're okay. It was only a nightmare. I'm here. I'm here now," he soothed, pressing a kiss to the top of the ex-Imperial's head.

When Alex finally collapsed against his chest, it was with a pained shudder and a weak cry. He made no more sound as he wept, but Zeb could feel the tears soaking his fur. He didn't say anything else, just held his lover as he cried, stroking his back and nuzzling the top of his head. When he heard the sound of their door sliding open, he looked up to see Hera standing in the entryway, her very pregnant figure silhouetted in the dim light from the corridor.

Zeb shook his head when she offered him a questioning look. If Alex noticed he'd woken her, he would just feel worse. Nodding, she withdrew, but she left the door open. Zeb heard when she went in the direction of the galley instead of back to her room.

"What was it?" Zeb asked after he'd properly calmed down, running his fingers lightly through his blond hair.

"Onderon...Lasan...everything? I don't know," he mumbled helplessly. "Often enough it happens...that Onderon _becomes_ Lasan...and _I'm_ the one with the rifle. I think- perhaps I was pleading with _myself_ ," he explained in a heavy voice.

"Well...guess we _all_ have things we regret...always will," he said, lifting the other man's puffy, tear-stained face to his with a hand beneath his chin. "Know one thing I _don't_ regret?"

"No."

"Fallin' for you."

A saddened, weary smile broke across Alex's face at this. He reached up to run his fingers along the side of Zeb's face, fresh tears trickling down his cheeks.

"Zeb..." he started, but couldn't seem to find the words, not before the Lasat had drawn him into a kiss – a tender, loving press of lips that didn't presage anything more, simply reassured them both that the other was there, would _always_ be there.

"Well, I guess there's more than one way to cheer up sleepless ex-Imperials," Hera's amused voice interrupted them. They looked up to see her entering their room with a tray holding three mugs.

"Oh, Hera, you shouldn't have-" Alex started, clumsily disentangling himself from his lover so the two of them could sit up. "Did we wake you?"

Hera shrugged as she passed out the mugs of tea. "I was awake anyhow," she lied. "Figured if nobody's going to get any sleep tonight, we may as well make it pleasant."

"Thank you," Alex said, raising the mug to her before taking a sip.

When Zeb took a sip from his own mug, he was half-surprised to be met with the bitter, pleasing taste of caf. The strong drink had pretty much been banned from the _Ghost_ when Hera had learned she was pregnant. Zeb had never been a fan of tea, but Hera and Kal loved the stuff, so who was he to argue? He also wasn't about to question where this small bounty had come from. So he sat on the bed with the other two, sipping his hot beverage and just talking, reminiscing until the small hours of the morning cycle. They would all pay for their lack of sleep, certainly, but that didn't mean it hadn't been a good night.


	7. Love Letter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one…is a bit of a different twist on a love letter, but I suppose I just wanted to change it up a bit. I may break your heart a bit, but I hope you enjoy.

Honestly, Zeb could've _killed_ those bastards in high command for calling Hera to a briefing when she was still supposed to be on medical leave. Hera wasn't _quite_ as vocal over making her distaste for the notion known. She made her point by carrying the newborn Jacen with her to the briefing room. The medical droids tried their hardest to countermand the order but, as in all things, high command superseded everything else.

Zeb helped her make her way to the briefing room, but his presence wasn't needed beyond that, so he opted to wait outside for when she needed help getting back to the med ward. While he was waiting, mostly patiently, Chopper trundled up to him in a rush, nearly bowling him over.

"Karabast, Chop! You wanna apply the brakes there? Now what was that about Kal?"

The astromech gave a string of harried, high-pitched whistles as he bumped against Zeb's leg several times. The Lasat couldn't make much sense of his jabbering, but he thought he heard something about Kallus doing something stupid. Once Chopper was sure he had his attention, he began playing a holo-recording.

An image of Kal flickered to life over Chopper's dome. He was out of breath and clearly out of sorts about something, but he didn't hesitate once he was certain Chopper was recording.

"Zeb, I don't have a lot of time. I know I should've come to find you myself, but I knew you'd try to stop me. I don't know what you've heard, you've been in with Hera and Jacen so much these last twenty-four hours, but the point is that high command's made a foolish decision and some of us are getting together to- countermand it, as it were," he said, gaze flicking off to the side with something like amusement.

"I know you've heard me speak of Cassian's involvement with Operation Fracture. It- it's _so_ much worse than we could've imagined. The Empire truly does possess a planet killer. They call it the Death Star...and it will be the end of us all," he continued, his gaze going distant, guilt-ridden, for a brief moment. But then he refocused his attention on the recording. "There's a way to destroy it, but we must go directly to the source...the data vaults on Scarif. High command wouldn't support a mission to make the run, so Cassian's gathered a few of us...we who _know_ what needs to be done and will do it."

"Alex..." Zeb whispered in horror. This sort of run...it was _suicide._ He knew _exactly_ what he was signing up for.

"I may not- return," the holo-image said quietly, apologetically, moving perfectly with the cadence of Zeb's realization. "In case this is my last chance to say it...I wanted to remind you of my love...not because I think you don't know, but because I know how hard you will take this. I imagine you're- probably thinking that I didn't give a thought to _us_...that I did this just to assuage my own guilt...and while that's not entirely untrue, I want you to understand that I made this decision _for you._ "

 _Don't. Don't do this,_ his desperate heart pleaded, even though this was already done and couldn't be _un_ done. _Don't say you're gettin' yourself killed because of_ _ **me.**_ _I can't accept that._

"I've never properly expressed- just how much I owe my life to you. You pulled me out of darkness when you had every reason in the galaxy to leave me to rot. You didn't _have_ to save me- that night on Bahryn, but you did. I'm not even talking about physically. I mean- when you opened my eyes to what I had been blind to. You owed me nothing...and still you gave of yourself that one more person who was lost might be found again. That's you, through and through...my Zeb... _ni ashkerra_. It would be terribly ungrateful of me...to throw my life away when you fought so hard for it."

"Too right," Zeb growled, feeling the threat of tears stinging just behind his eyes.

"But call me a little selfish. I want to be able to do the same for you. I want to give myself to save you. I want to protect the galaxy where _you_ live...because so long as you are alive, hope is never truly lost. Our love...is never truly lost," he said, his voice changing in pitch as his throat tightened around the words. Zeb couldn't be sure through the grainy quality of the image, but he thought he saw several tears slide down his lover's face. "I never really understood- what Kanan and Ezra meant when they talked about the Force. I probably still don't, but- if the Force is the notion that my love for you can never die...that it lives in all things...then I will gladly believe in it when I face my end. If I never see you again, I will _happily_ believe that what I feel for you is protected, bound tightly within the smallest atom of the most distant star. Zeb...my love...that is something they can _never_ take away from us...no matter what they do. So, at the very last, I want you to understand my full meaning when I say that I love you. _I love you,_ Garazeb Orrelios, and I _shall_ love you until all of reality burns itself out of existence. Goodbye, _ni ashkerra_...a thousand times goodbye," he whispered at the last, just before the image cut out, leaving Zeb alone with Chopper and... _that._

Tears were pouring openly down his face. He had no control over that, but he at least managed to keep back the howls of grief that were tearing at his throat, demanding release that he refused to give.

 _Don't you do it. Don't you_ _ **dare**_ _fall apart! If you lose it now, it means he really is gone. Maybe it's not too late?_

Chopper warbled uncertainly up at him for a moment, words he didn't quite catch, but before he could ask the little droid to clarify, the briefing room doors slid open and a very exhausted Hera stepped out, her newborn son cradled against her chest. But all of her exhaustion melted away the moment she saw the look on Zeb's face.

"Zeb? What is it?"

"Alex...it's Alex."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And now let's all imagine that this is followed by my Day 4 ficlet, where everyone lives and nobody dies. Let's imagine the Ghost bravely gallivanting off to save Rogue One in that happy, innocent reality where nobody's dead. Or, if you're so inclined, you can imagine that it all goes exactly according to canon, in which case both you and I are terrible people. Whatever tickles your fancy, really.


	8. Accidental Confession

He was going to kill him.

He was actually going to _kill_ that fool-headed Lasat this time.

Zeb did foolish things for the people he cared about. Kallus had made his peace with that fact.

What he was _not_ prepared to make peace with was Zeb shoving him through a closing blast door, leaving the Lasat trapped on the other side to face a cadre of stormtroopers alone.

" _ZEB!_ " he shouted, banging a desperate, angry fist against the sealed door. Nothing. Of course the Lasat couldn't hear him. Scrabbling for his comlink, he quickly tore into their channel. "You _fool!_ You _damn well_ better not expect me to actually leave you behind!" he half-screamed.

"That was kinda the idea, yeah," Zeb's grunted response came through a hail of blaster fire and pained shouts. "Sorry for the short notice."

"Zeb, don't you _dare_ be a hero right now!" he snarled, actually slamming the butt of his blaster against the unyielding stretch of metal, despite knowing it was pointless. "I am _not_ leaving this moon without you!"

"You're gonna have to!" he snapped back. "Hera needs those modules. Get the kids and _get out!_ "

"If you honestly think-"

" _Alex!_ " Zeb interrupted him harshly around a grunt of pain. "I didn't plan anything here. This is just- how it has to be. I'm sorry."

"Sorry?" he repeated in horrified anger. "If you were sorry, you wouldn't do this at all."

"Alex, _please-_ "

" _No!_ "

"Go. Just _go_."

"I _won't!_ "

"I can't do this unless I know you're safe!"

"So what is this? Some sort of ridiculous Lasat honor thing?"

"No! I just- I can't lose you!"

" _Why not?_ Why does it have to be-"

" _Because I LOVE YOU!_ " the Lasat's voice thundered over the comlink.

Nothing in his life had ever stricken the ex-ISB agent speechless before. He was speechless now. For a long moment, silence reigned in the corridor outside the blast door, Alex standing there with his fist against the cold durasteel, breath caught in his throat and eyes wide and unseeing, too shocked to take in anything else. When that silence was finally broken, it was by Zeb's voice, gentle despite the hum of battle counterpointing it.

"I love you. I'm sorry you had to find out this way, but I guess this is my only chance to tell you."

"You _love me?_ " he repeated in shock. " _You_ love _me?_ "

And he was really going to leave him on _that?_

_Kriff that!_

His mind instantly snapping back into place, Kallus turned his focus to the control panel beside the blast door. He may have bloodied his own fingers a bit in the effort to pry its plasteel covering from the wall, but he didn't care. What he had in mind would be crude, but it would work. Once he'd rewired the necessary circuits, he contacted Zeb again.

"Zeb?"

"Still here, love."

"When I tell you to, jump in the air."

"What? What are you-"

" _Just do it!_ "

" _FINE!_ "

"All right... _now!_ " he shouted just before connecting two of the stripped wires.

The blast door drifted open a few minutes later, revealing Zeb standing alone amongst a sea of downed, electrocuted stormtroopers, many still twitching from the overload command he'd triggered in the room's outlets. Zeb smiled guiltily back at him, standing well against the former Imperial's angry gaze.

"So, Garazeb Orrelios...did you maybe want to try that again?"


	9. Serious

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this one philosophizes a fair amount on my musings on Lasat language and culture while still also managing to be a sex scene. That was fun. Hope it goes well. :)

> _Tinsahn Keeraw._
> 
> _The Way of the Bond._ _To the people of Lasan, the Tinsahn Keeraw is more than just words. It is a bond of the spirit. It is two souls who know and understand each other absolutely. Two beings who see the brightest and the darkest of each other and do not flinch from the sight. Two strands of fate bound together by the Light and the Dark. The Tinsahn is a catalyst for change. Whether it be to bring light to the darkness or darkness to the light or to meet somewhere in the middle, when two fated souls come together, the world around them will change._
> 
> _It is unknown what shape the Tinsahn will take between two such souls. It can form as either a great friendship or a sworn brotherhood. More than once, even avowed enemies have laid claim to the power of the Tinsahn._
> 
> _Most often, though, the Tinsahn forms as a bond of love. Where the Tinsahn exists, there is a depth of understanding and clarity that exists in no other bond, and often enough, this will take form as love_ – _a bond stronger than what many beings look to as partnership, as marriage._
> 
> _Whatever else it may be, it is the Tinsahn, and it is the light of the soul_ – _a sacred territory upon which no other being may intrude._
> 
> _The Tinsahn Keeraw._

**_-from the writings of Firbog Azurri_ **

**_High Sage of the Temple Vyr Ashnahn_ **

X

Zeb gave a long groan as he felt Alex settle against his thighs. For several moments, they just held like that, the human still adjusting to the size of the Lasat's length inside him.

"You all right?" Zeb asked after a time, reaching a hand up to touch his lover's face.

"Yes," Alex answered breathlessly, smiling as he turned his head to press a kiss to Zeb's palm. Then he began to move, setting a slow, luxuriating pace for their lovemaking as he took Zeb into him over and over again.

Not for the first time, Zeb caught himself wondering how they had come so far. How they had gone from enemies to... _this._

_The Ashla will work her ways in mystery and can't no one tell her different._

Whatever else it was, it was the Way of the Bond – _their_ bond.

_Tinsahn Keeraw._

He knew he'd first recognized what was between them as such after Bahryn. His heart opened to the doubting Imperial, he had recognized something of himself in Alexsandr Kallus. He had had little choice but to acknowledge the ties that bound them, even if he couldn't have guessed back then just how deep they could run.

Alex began to pant harshly as he moved above him, an appetizing flush moving across his pale cheeks.

" _Val Ashla,_ " Zeb moaned at the sight, hips shifting up to meet the human's motions. " _Sastyria sova zeban._ "

Alex's blush only deepened at his words, but the smile didn't leave his face. "Stop that," he scolded mildly, his golden hair falling into his face.

"Never," Zeb returned as he caught one of the human's hands in his, drawing it to his mouth for a mirroring kiss to the palm. " _An san sastyrial...sastyrial gal-_ _ **z'**_ _astyr._ "

Alex shook his head, still smiling as several happy tears slipped from his eyes. "I don't deserve you. _La velka zashir li serra menashi gal orror remenir an._ "

Zeb shook his head in kind as he drew Alex down into a proper kiss, their bodies bound so tightly together as they moved against one another.

No. He hadn't known then just how deeply he could love this man, how hard and fast he could fall. He couldn't pinpoint the moment it had become so serious between them, but he was perfectly content to spend the rest of his life making Alex believe just how serious he was if he had to.

His love...his _Tinsana_...

" _L'ashkerrir an,_ " he whispered in his ear.

_I love you._

At this, Alex came completely undone in a single, glorious moment, a tiny, almost-wounded cry escaping his lips as he reached orgasm. The small pulse of his seed left a pleasant tingling against Zeb's belly as he held him tightly.

Alex whispered several things against his lips in his moment of coital bliss, half in Basic and half in Lasana, all of it largely beyond comprehension as he rode out the wave of his climax. It took several clenches from his still-spasming body to pull Zeb over the edge with him.

Zeb came with a surprisingly high-pitched grunt, gripping his lover tightly as his barb shot free with his release, holding him fast inside the human.

Alex gave one last weak cry at the additional stimulation, one last burst of seed pulsing sluggishly from his cock. Zeb could feel the way he trembled in his arms as they clung to each other, that last bit of stimulation almost too much for him. It was a while yet before Alex could form wholly coherent sentences again.

"Oh, my love...my love," the human mumbled in clear exhaustion, fingers curling insistently in the Lasat's fur. " _Ni ashkerra._ "

"I'm here. I'm right here. You can sleep if you want," he soothed the former Imperial, knowing how tired he tended to get after making love. He even felt a little tired himself. "I'll still be here."

"Zeb...Zeb..." Alex whispered several times as he drifted off to sleep. The Lasat smiled, dropping kiss after kiss to the top of his head as his own thoughts drifted.

_**Enemy...** _

_"I was there when Lasan fell. I know why you fear those disruptors._ _**I** _ _gave the order to_ _**use them!** _ _"_

_**Brother...** _

_"I didn't take it as a trophy. The Lasat guardsman I faced, he- fought well...died with honor. He_ _ **gave**_ _me the rifle before-"_

_**Friend...** _

_"He said to tell you that you were even."_

_**Lover...** _

_"_ _ **I love you,**_ _Garazeb Orrelios, and I_ _ **shall**_ _love you until all of reality burns itself out of existence."_

He didn't know how _one person_ could be all of those things. Hells, he'd lived through it and he still didn't think he really had the answer. In the end, all he really had was what he felt, and that was what gave the _Tinsahn_ its strength.

" _L'ashkerrir an_ ," he said one final time before drifting off himself. "I will _always_ love you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so some translations are probably in order for the stuff that wasn't given in context.
> 
> Val Ashla, Sastyria sova zeban - By the Ashla, beauty made real
> 
> An san sastyrial…sastyrial gal- z'astyr - You are beautiful…beautiful and- so strong
> 
> La velka zashir li serra menashi gal orror remenir an - I could live a thousand years and never deserve you
> 
> Tinsahn Keeraw is also a concept that appears in my ongoing fic, but I know not everyone's read that monster, so I wanted to present it here in a way that both explained what it was and also presented something new for all of you who are familiar with it. :D
> 
> Gods. I'm conjugating verbs and separating out tense speech for a made up language. I've etymologically broken down the meanings of words like Ashla and Garazeb and Lasan. I friggin' defined karabast! SOMEBODY SEND HELP!
> 
> Confound it all. I love it, though.


	10. Silly

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In spite of the fact that we'd been doing this whole prompt fest in the name of kicking off a wedding planning blog, I couldn't help but notice that none of us had actually written anything about a wedding. I needed to change that. And because every ship deserves at least one of these ( and I'm fairly certain no one's done it for our boys yet), my fellow Kalluzebers, I present to you a Pirates of the Caribbean-style wedding!

As an ex-ISB agent, Alexsandr Kallus felt he could safely say that he'd been trained very well to deal with unexpected occurrences. Often times, a mission or a battle could turn on one's ability to adapt to a new situation. All things being even, he had dealt with the unexpected very well up to this point.

So he might just have to pop Zeb a new one for ruining that mostly spotless record, because the middle of a fight was not the place to spring a surprise on your partner.

The _Ghost_ had been waylaid in its course to rendezvous with the rest of the Rebel fleet for the run on the new Death Star. Captured by a Star Destroyer, they were having to fight their way out of its brig. Several of their irregular crew members were dead or injured and even if they did make it out of here alive, there was certainly no guarantee of surviving their next fight. So Kallus supposed he could see _why_ Zeb chose that moment, but still...

" _Alex!_ " Zeb had shouted as he fought his way to him through a cluster of stormtroopers, seizing his arm when he'd finally reached him. "Will you marry me?"

Logically, he knew it was only a second that he stood, staring open-mouthed at his lover in shock, but it felt like eons to him with the proposal he'd just dropped on him. He only managed to refocus in time to raise his bo-rifle to fire at a trooper who'd been aiming for Zeb.

"I- I hardly think now is the best time!" he spluttered out before the two of them spun away from each other to continue taking out troopers. Rex and Hera had cleared a path to the hangar where their ship was locked down.

"Now might be the only time!" Zeb pointed out, slamming two troopers against a bulkhead simultaneously before offering up a fresh challenge. "Come on! _Who wants some?_ "

He had to take out several more before he could make his way back to Kallus' side, leaving the ex-Imperial the opportunity to consider what his lover had actually said while he fought his way through more stormtroopers.

There was no doubt in his mind that he _wanted_ to marry Zeb, but...he'd always pictured Zeb being able to indulge in all the Lasat traditions his heart could possibly desire. Not some hyperspace wedding.

Only...

...Hera was always saying how she'd thought she and Kanan would have more time. What if this was all the time he and Zeb would get? If their time had come...didn't he want to meet that end knowing he'd shared this with the man he loved? When Zeb finally managed to get back to him, he had his answer.

"I love you," the Lasat immediately started in, thinking he still needed to convince him. He grabbed onto his arm, keeping them together within the thick press of the fighting. "I've made my choice, Alex. What's yours?"

Even in the heated midst of the battle, Kallus took the time to offer his love a tender smile. Then he was shouting up through the thick of the fighting, to where Rex was covering Hera and Chopper as they attempted to slice their way into the bay. "Hera! Marry us!"

He saw the Twi'lek's shoulders stiffen on hearing the request. When she turned back to them she fired off two shots at two enemies who'd managed to get under Rex's narrow perimeter. "I'm a little busy at the moment, you two!"

Before any of them could say anything else, they were each engaged by a new enemy, Zeb and Kallus beating down the fresh wave of troopers while Hera took potshots at the few who were foolish enough to attempt to interfere with Chopper.

"Hera, _now!_ " he heard Zeb shouting as he drove the electrified tip of his weapon into the vulnerable join of his opponent's helmet and chest plate. When he managed to look back at their captain, it was to see several tears running down her face. She smiled at him a moment before nodding, not even looking when she blasted the next stormtrooper.

"All right! Fine then! So stubborn!" she snapped, her grin sad as she scrubbed the tears from her face. Then she was scrambling up onto the metal frame that surrounded the blast doors in order to get herself a little above the fighting.

Kallus didn't have to reach far to find Zeb's hand. Their fingers were immediately intertwined, familiar and comforting in the midst of the chaos as they pulled each other close.

"Dearly beloved," Hera shouted over the noise, the traditional starting words of the non-denominational intergalactic wedding ceremony, "we are gathered here today-"

"To blast bucketheads into Wild Space!" Rex snarled when he and Hera were distracted by yet another wave of the white-armored troops. Zeb and Kallus were quickly forced to swing apart to engage the seeming never-ending throng. When they rejoined, it was with their rifles strapped to their backs, their hands reaching out to clasp each other.

"Alexsandr Kallus, do you take me to be your husband? For better or for worse?" Zeb asked him. The smile on his face was elated, but there was still a touch of worry in it. Kallus immediately crushed that worry.

"I do," he vowed, his nod just as elated.

"Heh, great," Zeb said with a small, relieved laugh, and Alex honestly might have kissed him right there had he not seen the officer aiming for Zeb's back. With a warning look, he quickly drew his bo-rifle, snapping it into firing configuration to take the man down. If the sound of blaster fire overhead was any indication, Zeb was doing the same for him. When they came together again, it was with their weapons back in staff mode, and Alex didn't think his smile could grow any wider as he reached out to take Zeb's hand in his.

"Garazeb Orrelios, do you take me to be your husband?" he asked as they spun around with their hands still joined, their rifles taking out a wide swath of stormtroopers with the balletic motion. "In sickness and in health-"

He was interrupted when a fresh wave of movement forced him against the Lasat, turning in his one-armed hold just in time to see Zeb impale the latest trooper on his electrified weapon.

"With health being the less likely," he ground out with a feral, joyous smile, trusting Zeb to hold his weight as he lifted his legs, using them to kick the trooper away. Once he was on his feet again, he turned to face Zeb to hear his answer.

"I do," the Lasat said with a roguish grin, reaching to pull him back into his arms. But they were interrupted once again by the fighting.

"As captain, I now pronounce you man and man!" Hera shouted over the cacophony of the battle. "You may kiss-"

This time she was interrupted by the door finally sliding open and jostling her from her perch. While she was preoccupied, the two newlyweds took out several more stormtroopers together. When they hit a lull, Zeb pulled him in close again, attempting to kiss him. Alex vaguely heard Hera attempt to deliver the benediction again as they were forced apart by the threat of impending death.

They moved through it all in a dance-like daze, sweeping down enemy after enemy in their sudden bliss. They moved perfectly in sync, their offense and defense flawless, each lending a strength where the other presented a weakness. They moved like this for an indeterminable amount of time, protecting and destroying, whirling and reeling with the intensity of it – right up until the moment they spun on each other, rifles tangling together in a heated press as they gazed at each other across them, both panting harshly.

"Just kiss!" Rex finally snarled at them. "And get a move on. We've gotta go!"

Alex didn't need to be told twice. Pushing Zeb's bo-rifle away with his own, he pulled the Lasat to him in a bruisingly passionate kiss. For a few precious moments, the galaxy around them fell away, leaving the two of them alone in their new found rapture. Alex was almost afraid to let himself linger over the new word.

Husband.

Zeb was his husband. He was _Zeb's_ husband. They were married.

"If you two are finished making out yet," Sabine snapped as she hurried by them. "You don't wanna miss the fireworks."

Oh, they had fireworks a plenty right there between them, but they both knew she was right. So they quickly followed after her, Zeb actually tripping and tumbling on the _Ghost's_ entry ramp, leaving the pair of them tangled up in each other as the small freighter fled the scene. They kissed and they kissed again, drunk off each other, off their own boldness and the endless sweep of _possibility_ that now lay before them.

"Come on, you guys," Sabine teased with a light chuckle. "It can't have been _that_ crazy."

"Do you mind, Sabine?" Kallus teased right back before turning his full attention back down to his husband – his _husband!_ he didn't think he would ever be able to have enough of saying it. "We've just been married."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, I have been waiting to do that one. A little bit silly and a little bit awesome! Also, let's all just assume the Kallus has somehow made/acquired a new bo-rifle by this point.


	11. Heat

Zeb loved Kallus. Really, he did.

But sometimes he also wanted to smack him upside the head.

He could understand how the climate of Yavin IV lent itself to people going around in a state of somewhat less dress than usual. Hells, he'd like to remove his own fur if he could, but that wasn't exactly an option. Kallus, on the other hand, definitely had the option. Zeb remembered the initial days after they'd all escaped from Atollon, about how straitlaced and Imperial the human had been, still was some days. That Alexsandr Kallus never would've considered removing even a single stitch of clothing, no matter how hot it was.

But with time and distance, the man had begun to loosen up – time, distance, and a damn good lay (if Zeb said so himself). These days, he was much more comfortable joining his rebel cohorts in shedding clothing that wasn't strictly necessary. And Zeb had no doubt Kallus _knew_ he was looking.

Really, how could he help it? When Kallus began the day in full uniform, but gradually peeled away pieces of it over the course of a very hot day, until he was down to just his pants and boots, leaving _very_ well-defined muscles bared to the humid air, each perfect inch glistening with sweat...

Bogan take him, but he was so gone on this man. It was hot enough as it was. Did he really have to suffer through it with thirst on top of everything else?

The last straw came for the Lasat when Kallus paused to take a drink of water in helping fetch some spare tools for Hera while she worked on an X-wing. Zeb looked over in time to see him taking a swig from a bottle, a few drops of clear fluid escaping his mouth and sliding sinuously down his neck...onto his chest...

Zeb was across the hangar space before he was even conscious of making a decision to move. He was just as vaguely aware of pulling Kallus with him beneath a parked freighter, concealing them from the rest of the bay's view behind one of the ship's landing struts.

"You are entirely too good-lookin' for your own good, Alex" he groaned as he nuzzled his face into the ex-Imperial's neck, mingling his scent together with his, even though it hardly mattered. There was no one even on the planet who could understand the meaning of their joined scents, much less actually smell that heady, musky fragrance.

"You're probably right," Kallus conceded, shuddering with want as Zeb mouthed at the juncture of his neck and shoulder. "But I hope you don't plan to do anything about that _here_ , Captain Orrelios. Where _anyone_ could spot us."

"Oh, no. We're not playin' that game. You've been grindin' down my nerves all day and you know it," he said, looking up at Kallus with a teasing smirk. "Mon Mothma herself and the whole of High Command could stroll up right now and I wouldn't give half a kriff. I'd slam you against the nearest star ship hull and _do you_ so hard, you wouldn't need the ship to touch those stars," he said, lowering his mouth to one of the ex-agent's exposed nipples and briefly swirling his tongue over it, drawing a barely contained _gasp_ from his lips.

"Ungh...Zeb..." he whimpered faintly, and the Lasat was pleased to glance down and see a conspicuous bulge already beginning to form in his partner's pants.

"But we can get to that later tonight. Right now, I know Hera's waitin' on you, so I'll make this quick," he said as he dropped to his knees before the former Imperial.

The little moan that slipped from his lover's mouth could only be described as delicious. When he looked to the man's face again, it was to see a heated blush blooming on his pale skin.

"Zeb!" he choked out quietly. "You can't seriously think to- right _here_...out in the open. We're- exposed," he tried to protest.

"That's the idea," Zeb pointed out harshly before snapping open Kallus' belt and jerking his pants down a few inches. Then he was mouthing very deliberately at the shape of him through the sleek black fabric of his undershorts.

Kallus very nearly cried out at the sensation, head falling back against the strut while his fingers scrabbled desperately at it. And much though Zeb would've loved to draw this out, to work over every inch of his lover through the tight fabric before even thinking of going further, he _had_ promised Alex that this would be quick. So, lowering the undershorts only to about mid-thigh, he took just a few precious seconds to appreciate the sight of the human's beautifully hard cock before lapping the tip of it into his mouth like a favorite bit of candy.

Kallus really did cry out this time, barely managing to muffle the tiny, stricken sound with an arm thrown over his mouth. The sound alone was enough to draw Zeb to full arousal, causing him to groan around the human's prick as he went at it, rough tongue laving generously over every inch of heated flesh he could get at.

"Oh...Zeb...oh, _stars...ah!_ " Alex panted out, one hand reaching forward to grip at the fur at the base of his skull, clearly resisting the urge to thrust, even though they were both perfectly aware Zeb could take it.

The sounds Zeb was making devolved into outright growls as he bobbed his head up and down on top of the human, utterly merciless in his ministrations, licking and sucking and nipping until he knew his lover couldn't take it anymore. When he allowed one of his fangs to run dangerously along the length of hard flesh, it became too much for Alex.

Actually rising up on his toes, the ex-Imperial tensed for just a moment before coming completely undone, muffling his own cry as he released down Zeb's throat. The Lasat just growled possessively all the while, eagerly taking in every drop of his seed.

Once Alex had finished, Zeb held him like that against the strut, hands clamped firmly at his hips while his prick softened in the Lasat's mouth. When he finally released him, he stood quickly, pulling the blissed out human into his arms for a brief embrace. Alex laughed faintly against his chest as he struggled to remaster himself.

"That really was too good for my own good. Had best be careful teasing you in the future."

"Too right," Zeb returned, pressing a quick peck to his lips before pulling back from his lover, careful to make sure he could stand on his own before pulling away entirely.

"Did- did you-" Alex started to ask, reaching for his belt. Sometimes the human managed to make him come untouched, but this wasn't one of those times.

"No," he said, stepping just out of Alex's reach. "But come find me later and we'll see about returnin' that favor. Meantime, I'll be thinkin' about you," he said, saluting the ex-Imperial before making a somewhat jaunty retreat in the direction of the _Ghost_ , hoping nobody noticed the state he was in.

"Oh, I'll have you later, Garazeb Orrelios. That I promise you," Kallus called after him.

"Lookin' forward to it."


	12. Cold

Honestly, what was it with the pair of them and frozen wasteland planets?

First it was Bahryn. And not that the little ice moon wasn't a fond memory for the two parties involved, but a frigid ice moon was a frigid ice moon.

Next it was Hoth. Again, fond memories of keeping the cold at bay in slightly less than regulation ways, but being smoked out of any place by the Empire did tend to leave a bad taste in one's mouth.

Now it was some uncharted rock in the outermost ranges of the Outer Rim pursuing Imperial remnants. Zeb hadn't much succumbed to the cold after their crash landing, but Kallus knew _he_ had begun to. Vaguely, it occurred to him it might be worse than he'd allowed himself to think when Zeb carried his weak, barely-shivering form onto the _Ghost_ after Hera and Rex had picked up their signal.

"Come on, Alex. Stay with me," the Lasat encouraged him fiercely, easily cradling his six foot four frame against his chest. "It's gonna be all right now. Just don't quit on me."

He couldn't seem to make his mouth work well enough for a response. He had to settle for tangling his fingers in the Lasat's fur.

"Zeb, he's close to gone," he heard Hera's voice from somewhere distant. "You need to get him warmed up _now._ "

"Doin'," Zeb snarled quietly as he hurried them through the ship. Kallus only managed to identify the final destination as their bunk by the familiar, all-encompassing scent that was his lover. The next thing he became aware of was Zeb frantically divesting him of his clothing.

Part of his mind was ready to make a joke about Zeb wanting to get him naked, but the rest was too lost in cold and fog to actually string words together. So he just let it happen, beyond even the point where he'd consciously acknowledged that he might be freezing to death.

The next revelation to drift through his untethered mind was the seemingly endless parade of blankets being piled on top of him. Where did Hera keep all of these?

_Yes, because that's the important question right now._

Even so, Kallus wasn't truly aware of just _how_ cold he was. He didn't become cognizant of that until he felt Zeb slipping under the blankets with him, nothing between them but the Lasat's hastily towel-dried fur.

He actually felt tiny lances of hot pain along his skin as Zeb gathered him in his arms. Giving a small cry of pain, he unthinkingly tried to pull away from the sensation.

"No...no," his lover scolded him, holding him even tighter. Then he began to press encouraging kisses to his face. "I know it hurts, but the pain's a good sign. Means you're still alive. We'll get some feelin' back in you yet."

"...rather...have _you_ in me," he managed to joke with a crooked smile.

Zeb chuckled quietly, the sound soothing in the slowly heating darkness of their bunk. "We'll see what we can do about that later. Right now, we're gonna focus on getting you warmed up."

With that, the Lasat slowly began to work over every inch of his face, massaging the life back into the freezing skin with lips and tongue. Once the stinging pain of recirculation had passed, the human was left with a pleasant tingling sensation in the well-loved skin, particularly in his ears and nose.

Zeb's next destination was his fingers, which, he faintly realized, he'd been in real danger of losing. The Lasat lavished attention on each one, sucking for several moments before laving thoroughly with his tongue, occasionally nipping to test the feeling there, which Alex let him know in no uncertain terms.

The firm, pointed worship continued past his rescued hands, from his palms, up his wrists and forearms to his shoulders. On to his neck and collarbone, down to his chest. He felt a certain _other_ part of his body begin to awaken when he felt Zeb's hot breath ghost along his nipples.

"Good to know... _that's_ in one piece," he managed with a faint laugh, body beginning to move eagerly against Zeb's. Pleasure was beginning to awaken in his body, not just the sensation of returning feeling.

"Right," Zeb whispered breathily against him as he kissed and licked trails up and down his torso, hands moving beneath his back to give it just as thorough a working over. Between kisses, he continued with, " _He'll_ get attention later."

"Such a tease," he said with a small groan, _really_ beginning to appreciate his lover's levity. Although he couldn't wholly contain the tiny whimper that slipped free when Zeb bypassed his stiffening cock altogether.

He traveled instead to Alex's toes, being just as thorough in his care of them as he had been with his fingers. Gently but firmly, he worked the feeling back into them, and once they were satisfactorily warmed, the Lasat moved slowly back up his legs, kissing and tonguing every bit of skin he could get at from his feet, up his ankles and calves, up past his knees and finally onto his thighs. When Zeb put his mouth everywhere but where Alex actually _wanted_ him to put it, he couldn't hold himself back anymore. He came between them with a small cry and a messy burst of semen.

Zeb laughed aloud at that one. "And here I was just about to get to that. Guess that's warmed up enough, then?"

"Logically," Kallus conceded. "Doesn't mean it wouldn't appreciate the same treatment. After all, _you_ haven't come yet."

"That wasn't the point of this. Was definitely an added bonus, though," he admitted.

"So get the rest of the bonus," he invited, nipping at the Lasat's ear. "More friction can only help, after all."

Zeb agreed with a small growl, pinning Alex to the bunk and thrusting languidly between his legs for several minutes before finally coming, his seed mingling with the ex-agent's in a pleasant, if sticky, mess between his thighs. Alex sighed in contentment as they cuddled together beneath the blankets, finally warm again.

"You know, someday you and I really are going to wind up freezing to death on a block of ice in the middle of nowhere," he joked, his humor black as he burrowed into the Lasat's embrace.

"Probably," Zeb agreed, pressing a tender kiss to his forehead before they both drifted off to sleep. "But not today."


	13. Everyday Act

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Minus the carrying, I think this is probably an exchange I've had with my wife.

It was, of course, a well known fact in the Rebel Alliance that Captain Alexsandr Kallus was a _bit_ of a workaholic. Driven to extremes by a deeply ingrained Imperial work ethic and eaten from the inside by a sense of guilt and responsibility to right past wrongs, it was all a veritable high grade proton bomb just waiting to go off.

He could often be seen working at his desk in the intelligence unit at the smallest hours of the night, blinking back sleep as he poured over reports from field agents or pushed himself to break even one more Imperial cypher. The work was never-ending, and he knew that. He had been a military man in some form or other all his life, so he'd hardly expected that to change when he found himself on the opposite side of the same conflict.

What _was_ different was the constant, comforting presence of Garazeb Orrelios throughout it all. Despite all his own hangups over the Lasat's decision to return the feelings he'd nurtured for months longer than he wanted to admit, Zeb was nothing if not an attentive lover, and that extended well beyond the bedroom. He would often make appearances in the department when he was off shift to keep Kallus company or make sure he ate something. More recently, he had been trying to convince him to get more sleep, which was only successful about forty percent of the time.

This particular night, though, he found himself wishing for the Lasat to come and poke him as he blinked back sleep. With the letters of the report swimming so violently before his eyes and him not entirely certain his last few sentences made any kind of sense, he thought he might actually take Zeb up on an offer to get some sleep.

 _Just get this last one done, Kallus,_ he coaxed himself. _Then you can go to Zeb._

He was never to know if he'd succeed or not, because he finally blacked out entirely, and he didn't become aware again until he found himself blinking awake with his cheek pressed against a pleasant heat source and his nose filled with a familiar, heady scent.

"W- wha-" he mumbled unsuccessfully, his voice heavy with exhaustion.

"I dunno how you were plannin' to finish that report fast asleep at your desk," Zeb's soft growl tickled at his ear. "Unless you've perfected some sort of 'work while you sleep' technique I don't know about, which, to be fair, wouldn't surprise me in the least. That's just you. And you, Captain Kallus, are being remanded to a bed for at least twenty-four hours."

"But...my reporting..." he tried to argue, though he didn't struggle _too_ hard in the Lasat's embrace.

"No worries. Andor's handlin' it. Gotta get your trainee properly in the field sometime," Zeb said as he carried him through the temple corridors, back to the small room they shared.

"Reporting's not exactly in the field," the ex-Imperial snipped.

"Maybe not, but reports are still part of field work. Just let the kid handle it."

"Not that I have much choice in the matter," he said, managing to strike a small note of snark in his tone while cuddling closer against his lover at the same time.

"Now you're startin' to get the idea," Zeb said as he entered the room, crossing the short distance to the bed and gently laying Kallus down on the sheets. Still only half-awake, the former Fulcrum agent knew he wasn't much help in getting himself undressed, but Zeb didn't appear to mind it.

"You know," he started, voice distant and somewhat dazed, "carrying your lover to a bed is more typically the prologue to much more... _interesting_ activities," he said, turning his head and pressing a sloppy kiss to the Lasat's ear. He couldn't help the small note of pride he felt when Zeb shuddered at the sensation.

"Yeah, it is. But other couples get to do those activities. You 'n me? We don't get to have nice things because _one of us_ doesn't take care of himself," Zeb scolded, though the slightly worried smirk on his face was still fond. "We'll do those activities _after_ you've had some sleep."

"Promise?" Kallus asked, half-collapsing on the sheets once Zeb had him down to his undershirt and undershorts.

"Promise," Zeb returned as he crawled into the small bed with him. Kallus wasn't certain when he'd rolled down the top half of his battlesuit, but he was grateful to feel the velvety softness of the Lasat's fur against his skin as Zeb gathered him in his arms. "But you _do_ have to sleep first. There's no weaselin' your way outta this one."

Kallus yawned as Zeb powered down their one light. "I'm half-tempted to try...just out of principle."

Zeb gave a small laugh at that one. "Y'know, I don't think you actually could."

"Don't- don't tell me what I can't do- Garazeb," he said around several yawns, clinging to those last few moments of consciousness for all he was worth.

"Stubborn Imp."

"It's- it's like you don't even- know me at all..."

"Sleeeeep," Zeb crooned in a singsong voice, fingers stroking gently up and down his back.

"You're...such...a stupid...beautiful...fool 'sat..." he mumbled, not sure if he was even speaking coherent Basic anymore. "I l-...love you...big dummy," was the last thing he managed to get out before he was unconscious again.

And whether Zeb actually said 'I love you, too' or Kallus only dreamed it, what matter?


	14. Grand Gesture

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Somehow I don't imagine this is what was meant by a grand gesture. Everybody else had been doing proposals, which was lovely to read, of course, but me? I ended my run on wholesale slaughter. Because they are a battle couple, after all. :D (Yup. That's me. Also, let's just say Kallus has either made or acquired a new bo-rifle at this point because of reasons.)

It was odd.

One would think that, captured by stormtroopers, disarmed of one's bo-rifle, and with a blaster pressed against one's head, the emotion one might feel would be something along the lines of fear or anger or hatred.

One, however, was not Garazeb Orrelios, and he felt none of those things.

Well...maybe a little hatred. That was normal with bucketheads. But what he mostly felt was embarrassment over having been caught.

Everybody had bad days, apparently.

"Word just came through," the commander said to the trooper holding him at blaster point. "Summary execution. Spectre Four's too dangerous to be left alive."

"I've been looking forward to this one," the woman said as she primed her blaster.

"Hope the Ashla has pity on you bucketheads," Zeb said with a sneer as he looked up at the stormtroopers. "Because my husband _won't_."

Almost as if on cue, the sound of blaster fire sounded from somewhere in the barracks, followed quickly by an explosion and several screams.

"Reinforcements!" Zeb heard shouted over someone's comm. "We need reinforcements! We're taking heavy fire up here!"

"How many intruders are there?" the commander asked.

"How _many?_ " the voice on the other end of the comm repeated in disbelief.

"One," Zeb said quietly, smirking to himself.

The trooper tried to speak again, but was cut off by a fairly hideous scream. The troopers surrounding Zeb all began to fidget and chatter nervously, wondering what exactly it was that was happening out there. They had their answer soon enough when the blast doors blew apart.

Several volleys of blaster fire rained through the smoke-filled entryway before a blur of motion shot through it, taking the wary stormtroopers by surprise. All Zeb could make out was the distinct golden streak of Kallus' hair, along with the similar gold flash of an ignited bo-rifle.

Alexsandr Kallus swept the room, nearly as quickly as Kanan or Ezra might have. He cut down swaths of troopers with ease and precision, his Imperial training in play against the very people who'd given it to him.

It was only when his husband finally made his way to the knot of stormtroopers surrounding him that Zeb got a good look at the expression on his face. His amber eyes burned with an unbalanced rage, tinged with terror. He didn't even give their enemies a chance to use Zeb against him. With an enraged roar, he laid into them, taking each trooper down with exacting prejudice.

Once he'd finished them all off, he was left standing before Zeb, breathing hard and trembling with a shattered look of relief on his face.

"Are you all right?" Alex demanded as he collapsed to his knees before him, throwing his arms around Zeb's broad shoulders. " _Are you all right?!_ "

"I'm fine, love. I'm _fine_ ," he reassured him, nuzzling the side of his face against his husband's. He felt a little bad to acknowledge the fact that he hadn't considered just how badly Alex might take his capture.

" _Stars_. If I'd been even a second later...if I'd waited a _moment_ longer, they- they might've-"

"It didn't happen. We're okay," he soothed the ex-Imperial, wanting to envelop him in a hug, but still unable to. "Gotta say, though, I wouldn't mind gettin' outta these binders."

"Right. Of course," his lover agreed, struggling to shake himself off as he went to remove said binders.

"Guess we'll be wantin' to get outta here pretty quick, before more reinforcements show up."

Zeb caught a glimpse of Alex shaking his head as he retrieved Zeb's bo-rifle from one of the fallen troopers. "Don't be silly, _ni ashkerra_. There aren't any more soldiers left in this installation."

The Lasat stared at his husband's back a long moment, watching Alex steel himself to face him again. They weren't done with this. He knew. It was something the human would need to talk about later, but for now...

"Where are the others?"

"Still back at the crash. I...I knew they would try to stop me," Alex answered, still facing away from him.

"Alex...are you tryin' to tell me you just obliterated an entire Imperial garrison...just to save _me?_ "

"That is exactly what I am trying to tell you," he said as he finally turned back to him, handing over his bo-rifle with a heavy set to his shoulders.

"Whoa. I mean, I know you're probably gonna get a complex over it, but karabast. That's more'n a little hot," he said as he slung his weapon onto his back, and to his relief, his slightly aroused levity did manage to draw a small smile from his lover.

"Well, I'm glad you approve, dear, but we really ought to be getting back to the others. They'll be worried about you," he said as he started to lead the way out.

Before he could take more than a step, though, Zeb grabbed his arm, pulling him back into a fierce kiss, and for several moments, they remained like that, just relieved to be together again.

"Thanks," Zeb whispered against his lips when they parted for air.

"Always, my love," he returned, fingers reaching up to trace briefly along the side of his face. "Please...don't ever get captured again. I might not come save your sorry hide next time."

"Deal," Zeb said, even though they both knew not a word of it was true. Kallus would always come, just as Zeb would always come. No matter what might try to stand between them or tear them apart, they would always come for each other.

The Empire had better watch its kriffing back.


	15. One More Day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Extra little drabble I wrote for my dear Jellysharkbat. Figured I should give it a proper home. Might just end up becoming a drabble repository, this fic. ;D

Snow, as far as Alexsandr Kallus was concerned, could go get kriffed.

Granted, it was in the middle of a snow storm he'd first begun to see the love of his life and he would be eternally grateful for that, but it was likely the only thing he ever  _ would _ grant to snow. Anything other than that one instance was evil incarnate. And that was saying something coming from a man who'd once worked at the very heart of the Galactic Empire.

The day had begun like any other at Echo Base. The techs still couldn't seem to adapt their speeders to Hoth's extreme cold, so patrols were still being carried out on tauntauns. Really, a  _ lot _ of their tech was having trouble on this world. Even his own double-layer thermal gear was barely managing to keep out the cold. The persistent subzero temperatures had been creeping in on him all week and the conditions had been making his bad leg crankier than usual which, in turn, made  _ him _ even crankier than his typical uptight self, and he knew it showed.

_ Say what you will about Yavin IV. At least heat is manageable. _

Draven had been on his case about the new supply line he'd been endeavoring to open up from an old Imperial contact who was just about fed up with Coruscant's precious New Order. It was a delicate process, though, so he was rather starting to wish the general would just take his less than subtle grumbling elsewhere. More than petty matters with Davitz Draven, there was also the fact that Cassian hadn't yet reported in from his latest assignment and Jyn and Bodhi were visibly beginning to worry, asking him if he'd heard anything. And he could understand their worry. Of course he could, but having to let down Cassian's odd little family every time one of them asked after the young Fulcrum agent was also beginning to wear on him. Today it seemed it was Bodhi's turn to receive the bad news as they passed through one of the supply corridors that connected the hangar bays with the storage areas.

"And there's really no emergency channels you might use?" the pilot pressed him as they walked.

"Believe me, Rook, I've tried all of them. At this point, it's up to Cassian himself," he responded with an exasperated sigh. "I promise you, I worry just as much as the rest of you. Cassian is my friend, too. But he wouldn't be a Fulcrum agent if he couldn't handle situations like this one. We just- have to trust him."

And as always, whenever he had to disappoint Bodhi Rook, Kallus felt as though he'd kicked the proverbial puppy at the silently despairing look in his fellow defector's large brown eyes. One just couldn't disappoint Bodhi Rook and walk away unscathed. It wasn't physically possible. And on top of that, his leg was  _ really _ starting to twinge, causing him to bite down on a wince.

The day was barely half over and already he would've been quite happy to have done with it.

_ What else can go wrong? _

He regretted thinking it almost the minute the poisonous thought had slithered through his brain. No situation is  _ ever _ so bad it can't be kriffed up even further; and that fact was proven almost immediately by an ominous-sounding  _ crack _ from overhead.

"What the-" Bodhi's voice started as they both looked overhead, but Kallus spotted the problem right away. A crack had indeed appeared in the ceiling over their heads, and already it was splintering and spidering outward from its initial break.

Kallus didn't stop to ask questions. The moment chunks of ice began to tumble into the corridor, he seized Bodhi's shoulder and threw them both free of the collapse.

The ex-Imperial felt his leg shriek in agony as they hit the permafrost floor of the tunnel, chips of broken ice flying overhead as a full section of the ceiling came down. Once debris had ceased spilling into the corridor, he began to hear voices from the next level up.

"Stars, what the  _ kriff- _ "

"What happened?"

"What's-"

"Is everyone all right down there?"

Forcing himself up onto his knees through the pain, Kallus looked up, calling back. "We're fine! Just the two of us down below. Anyone above injured?"

"No," came the mostly even voice of General Rieekan in response. Oh,  _ kriff _ . The command center.

"Though it might not be long before  _ you're _ not all right," the just as distinct voice of Draven followed only a moment after. Within seconds, the head of Rebel Intelligence's pinched face appeared over the edge of the hole in the ceiling. "Why is it I always seem to find an ex-Imperial around whenever something goes wrong?"

Kallus full-on  _ glowered _ up at the man overhead. Partly to hide his own grimace of pain, but also because he really was just that pissed at this point.

"Yes, because obviously we  _ plan _ for these things to happen," he snapped.

"I would be remiss in putting it past you. Fully trained ISB operative that your are, Agent ISB-021," the man taunted in a pointed voice.

That did it.

The frustration and physical pain that had been chipping away at his composure all week broke through his strict mental control. If he'd had his bo-rifle on him, he might've actually drawn it. "Kriffing arrogant  _ nerfherder! _ " he snarled up at the general. "If you think for one  _ second _ I would ever endanger  _ anyone _ in this base, then you've-"

"Kallus," Rieekan's now stern voice interrupted his imminent tirade as he joined Draven at the edge of the collapsed section. "I think it might be better if you took a walk. I know you said you weren't hurt, but you and Rook should probably take extra rest shifts, just to be certain."

"General, I-"

Whatever he might've said was quickly silenced by the Alderaanian's firm gaze. He scowled before going to help Bodhi up. Though he couldn't deny being the  _ tiniest _ bit pleased to catch the tail end of Rieekan's next order.

"You and I will be having words later, Davitz. You can't keep going on like this."

"Th- thank you," Bodhi stuttered out. "You definitely saved my neck back there."

"No trouble," Kallus returned, though he didn't look at the younger man, as he knew he couldn't manage a smile just then. "I'm quite certain it would be more than just Draven angry with me if I allowed harm to come to you. About half the Alliance, likely...not to mention Cassian and Skywalker," he said before starting to head in the direction of his quarters, leaning heavily against the wall as he moved.

"Do you maybe need help?" Bodhi called after him.

"No," he ground out, even though he knew he was limping. He was on trajectory now and couldn't stop. If he did, his anger would dissipate and that, in turn, would allow the pain he was currently keeping at bay to overwhelm him. He kept his eyes forward and his teeth gritted the whole way back to his and Zeb's quarters.

He barely managed to make it to the bed before collapsing, body now racked with pain and mind swirling with frustration, anger, and more than a little guilt.

_ Agent ISB-021... _

Most of the Alliance no longer held his past against him, but Draven was one who couldn't seem to let it go. He never missed an opportunity to remind Kallus of who he had been...of what he had  _ done _ ...

_ You are not that person anymore. _

_ Maybe not...but that doesn't mean it didn't happen. _

He had no idea how long he lay there, stewing in all that ugliness, before he heard the door to their quarters slide open. He looked over to see Zeb standing in the entryway.

"Rook told me what happened," he said without preamble as he entered, the door sliding shut behind him. "You okay?"

"As can be expected," he answered, though he couldn't quite keep back the tiny whimper of pain as he dragged himself into a sitting position. "Just the leg."

"You take anything?"

Kallus shook his head, rubbing faintly at his leg. "No. I wouldn't want to waste it. This will pass."

Zeb exhaled in frustration, and though Kallus wasn't looking at him, he could easily picture the way he would roll his luminous eyes. Before long, though, he found a slender thermal container thrust before his face.

"What...what's this?" he asked as he took the container.

"Little something Hera and I put together this morning from the  _ Ghost's _ stores. Some of that spiced tea you loved so much. I was makin' it for you anyway, since the cold's been seepin' in on you all week, but now seemed like a good time to bring it to you."

Wordlessly, Kallus twisted the vessel open, inhaling the divine scent of the black tea in mild disbelief. It was no small thing...to be able to make something like this with the limited supplies they had. He may have moaned a little as he took the first sip of the warm, frothy drink.

They didn't speak after that. After all, Kallus was reasonably certain Zeb would've got the whole story from Bodhi. The Lasat sat down beside him on the small bed, large, skilled fingers beginning to work at the improperly healed joint, soothing away some of the ever-present stiffness and pain and bringing the hurts from the day's misadventures down from an insistent snarl to a dull ache. More than the massage, it was really just nice to have Zeb's sure, strong hands on him.

Not wanting to drink all of the tea right away, he sealed the thermal up when it was about half-empty and set it aside. Then Zeb drew him into a kiss, a slow, luxuriating press of lips that didn't presage anything further, simply connected the pair of them in that moment.

_ I'm here. I'm here for you. People can be as stupid as they like, but they can't take this away from us. I'll always be right here. _

The kiss turned into a cuddle without much effort on their part. Almost before Kallus was aware of it, they were curled up together on their little bed, Zeb cradling him easily against the broad plane of his chest. Alex curled up tightly against him, languishing in the feel of his lover's arms around him, warm and strong, safe and caring. So much he had never expected to have in his life – never expected to be  _ worthy _ of – all vested within one amazing person.

They would have to return to their tasks eventually. There was always more work to be done. But for now, just for now, they would accept the quiet gift of simply being with one another. When it came right down to it, that gift was all they really had in the face of a vicious galaxy.

But it was also all they needed.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Now with added Tumblr! <https://anathtsurugi.tumblr.com/>


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